


Introduction

by thefullmetaledwardelric



Series: A New Senshi [1]
Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist, Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler, Mahou Sensei Negima!, xxxHoLic
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-13
Updated: 2014-09-13
Packaged: 2018-02-17 07:17:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2301152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefullmetaledwardelric/pseuds/thefullmetaledwardelric
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a reload... the last time I tried it came out terribly. Also, keep in mind I actually wrote this story about three years ago. I just wanted to share it here. The way I structured the original story though wasn't very compatible to this site's format so each 'chapter' of the story is it's own part and each 'section' of that original 'chapter' is a chapter within the part.</p><p>This is the introduction portion of my multifandom work "A New Senshi" about a girl named Natalie that discovers she is far more than she ever dreamed she could be. I'm pretty much going to refrain from adding notes going forward though... but I hope you enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just Another Day

“Hey Katie, you finished with that Black Butler yet?”

“Keep your shirt on Natalie, I want to enjoy this. Ah, Sebastian, you naughty demon butler you,” she replied sighing happily.

Natalie’s sigh wasn’t so happy, though she knew very well where that sentiment came from. It didn’t help her own boredom though. She grabbed her Edward Elric plush and flopped down on the bed. She’d already read through all the other manga that she and her friends had bought the weekend before at AnimeCon, their local yearly convention.

“So have you guys thought about what we want to go to AnimeCon as next year?”

“It’s only been a week since the convention ended, of course not. Besides, what’s to think about anyway? We do Lolita every year, why change it now?” answered Amy.

Natalie sighed again as she hugged her plush close. “But I’m tired of doing that every year. It’s been four years now that we’ve done that same tired outfit every time. That and I’m tired of the creepy older guys staring at me like some piece of meat in a weird sexual fantasy…”

Katie put her book down and looked at Natalie. “What would you do then? And please, whatever you do, don’t tell me you want to dress up as Ed…”

Natalie laughed. “As awesome as I think Edward is, no. I was thinking Sailor Moon characters.”

Amy and Katie just looked at each other and sighed heavily. “Really? Of the dozens of more recent mangas and animes you have around here, you pick that one??? No way…” Amy replied. “If you had said Bleach or maybe Negima that MIGHT have been a different story. The school uniforms wouldn’t be so hard to do and they do look cute, but Sailor Moon? No one even does that anymore anyway, it’s too old.”

“Fine, if you don’t want to do it then don’t,” Natalie said, pouting. “I’m going to do it anyway. And for your information it’s not as unpopular as you think. I saw at least six Sailor Moon cosplays each day this year so I know people still do it.”

“They were probably the same six each day,” Katie mumbled trying to keep it quiet enough that Natalie wouldn’t hear her. Thankfully she didn’t but Amy did and shot her a ‘You’re not helping’ look. Katie just shrugged it off and went back to reading.

Amy, being Natalie’s best friend, decided that it was just better to humor her for the sake of keeping the peace at this point. Once Natalie had locked onto something there was no making her give up on it.

“Ok, ok, so who are you thinking you’re going to do?”

Natalie’s face lit up. Finally, someone was taking her seriously. “I was thinking Sailor Pluto. She gets so ignored when it comes to cosplay but she’s one of the most awesome scouts. Everyone wants to be Sailor Moon or one of the inners scouts. That and having that staff would just be awesome too. My hair’s already long enough too; I just have to figure out how to dye it the right shade of green…”

When she mentioned dying her awesome blonde hair green, Amy looked at her as if she had three heads. “Dye your hair? Why? I mean, wouldn’t it just be easier to get a wig instead?”

Natalie shook her head. “No, I’d never be able to get my hair tied up enough to fit under a wig. The only way is to dye it because I refuse to cut it.”

“And you’re going to have time to get this done over the next year? I mean we are going into our senior year and you know how crazy that’s going to be… Extra work, prom, college visits, and…”

“Amy, you and I both know that I’m not going to college…” Natalie interrupted her voice low and hinting on sad. “It’s not like my mom has enough money to send me, she barely makes ends meet as it is. I mean come on, the only reason I can support my anime and manga addiction is because I have a part time job.”

“What about your dad?” Katie asked. Amy looked over at her wide eyed knowing that Natalie usually went off when anyone mentioned her father. Then she remembered Katie didn’t know what had happened with Natalie’s dad, she just knew that he wasn’t around.

Natalie snapped a bit, “That dead beat is only my father on the piece of paper they call my birth certificate. He’s useless. I haven’t seen or heard from him since I was five…” Natalie took a deep breath, closing her eyes. Her father had run off and left Natalie and her mother alone. Natalie had never forgiven him for that, making her mother suffer every day of her life ever since. It took her a moment but she managed to compose herself. “So anyway, my grades are average at best and I don’t do any after school clubs or sports so there’s no way I’ll get any scholarships. And the years I spent with you Amy at the dojo won’t count for much.”

“What about loans?” Amy asked.

Natalie shook her head. “I can’t put my mom through that. I’ll just work after graduation and see what happens from there. I might be able to find a way to do community college or something eventually.” Putting the plush down, Natalie went over to her window, staring out of it like she was looking for something or waiting for something that was just out of sight. “Someday things will be different,” she said softly.

Amy couldn’t help smiling at her friend. For Natalie’s sake, she hoped she was right. She hated seeing Natalie so sad.


	2. Crunch Time

“Ugh… stupid trim…”

Natalie threw the costume down to the table in frustration sighing heavily. This costume had been her entire world for nearly the last year, she wasn’t about to give up now. This was the year; she was finally going to go to a convention dressed up in something other than a Lolita outfit. It was taking her longer to get this done than she had thought it would but then her job had kept her busier than she had planned on. Thankfully she’d earned enough money to not only pay for the costume materials but she had also already gotten the money for her share of the hotel room for the convention with a bit to spare. By the time the convention was here, if she were lucky, she’d have plenty of extra spending money too. All of the sacrifices she had made to get this done would be worth it.

Taking a deep breath and regaining her composure, Natalie picked the costume up once again. She only had two more months to get this finished and she still had the staff to finish. Whoever said that making your own cosplay costumes was easy had to be on something really good because it had taken this long just to get the base sailor suit dress down. Now she had to worry about all of the trim work.

No sooner had she picked it up to finish the trimming on the collar than there was a knock on the door. “Natalie, you there?”

Natalie knew that voice. She quickly got up, almost spilling the costume on the floor as she did, and ran to the door. “Amy!!!” she squealed as she opened the door and through her arms around her best friend in the world. “Thank goodness, I could use a break…”

Amy saw the costume draped over the edge of the table and couldn’t help but chuckle. “You still insist on making that costume? You know you could just do Lolita again with me and Katie.”

Natalie shook her head. “Would you give that up?” she laughed. “You know I’m tired of the dirty otaku basement boys staring at me like a piece of meat. If people are going to be taking pictures of me, I at least want it to be because I worked really hard on a costume. I thought we had been through this.”

“You’re right and I said it before and I’ll say it again, you think that outfit, with its short skirt isn’t going to bring its own share of dirty basement boys?”

“I know it probably will, but it won’t only be them for once. I REALLY like Sailor Pluto and I’ve never made anything like this before. It means a lot to me.”

Amy just shook her head and chuckled. “Well then at least let me distract you for a bit…” Reaching into her bag, she pulled out the reason she’d come over in the first place.

“Is that…?” Natalie asked with bright, expectant eyes.

Amy smiled slyly. “You bet… Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. They were just putting it on the shelf when I got there.”

Natalie squealed, grabbing the DVD case out of Amy’s hand and running up the stairs to her room with it.

“Hey! Wait up!” Amy called after her as she followed. “I know you’re going through Ed withdrawals but yeesh this is ridiculous!”

“Can’t help it…” Natalie replied as Amy finally got to the door. “He’s just a character in a story but I can’t help loving him. He’s just so cute…” Natalie blushed. She knew how silly that sounded. Edward Elric was just as she said a character in a story, not real. No matter how much Natalie wished, nothing could change it but she could get lost in a few dreams every now and then. That’s what anime DVDs were good for. Having already put the disk in the player, Natalie settled onto the bed to get comfortable and watch. Amy did the same.

“You’re something else Natalie…” Amy said with a chuckle as she took up her own usual comfy spot next to her best friend. She couldn’t help but to notice that Natalie’s manga collection had grown. More Bleach, Black Butler, xxxHolic, Negima, and Fullmetal Alchemist to go along with the many other titles she had managed to hoard. She had even managed to get copies of some of the Sailor Moon manga. Amy knew that must not have been easy since she never saw it in print anywhere. She figured Natalie must have found it when looking for stuff for her costume. Natalie really was a hopeless manga and anime geek.

Natalie smiled brightly. “Yup, but that’s why you love me. Oh and hey, when you figure out what that something else is, let me know OK?”

Amy couldn’t help but to laugh. “You got it…”

“Shhhhh! It’s starting!” Natalie grabbed her Ed plush and snuggled it as she watched. Sailor Moon and Full Metal Alchemist were her weaknesses. Amy actually liked seeing her like this. It was the rare time when Natalie actually looked truly happy.


	3. Convention Day

Two months pass so quickly when you’re looking forward to something. Natalie was not immune to this any more than anyone else. It had been a grueling two months, sewing, crafting, and building. She had dug through the internet for things she couldn’t make herself. It had been a lot of hard work but here she was, in line to pick up her badge dressed in a flawless Sailor Pluto costume. Well it ‘looked’ flawless anyway and that was all that mattered. Amy and Katie were in line with her, dressed in the usual Lolita attire. Someday Natalie would get them to do something with a bit more imagination but for now it was alright.

Natalie wasn’t even out of line yet when the first requests for photos came. Natalie couldn’t say no. Taking her staff in her hand and smiling for the camera, she posed. She was so proud of the costume, especially the staff. She’d had to make it totally from scratch as there hadn’t even been parts to be had on the internet. It had taken a few tries but in the end she had succeeded.

After the first run of photo seekers had their fill and they were able to obtain their weekend passes, Natalie, Amy, and Katie made their way to the vendor room. They had to get their first round of pocky and ramune before they could go exploring anywhere else. It was a must.

“Oh look! They have body pillows!” squealed Katie as she ran over to a rack that held the covers.

“Anything good in there Katie?” Amy asked as she walked over to join her friend.

“Weren’t we just going to get Pocky and Ramune now and shop later? We do have all weekend you know…” Natalie chimed in.

“Yeah but something like this… it goes fast… and besides…” Katie paused as she pulled out a particular cover. “They have Ed…” Katie couldn’t help but wave it about to get Natalie’s attention.

“What?!” Natalie ran over and grabbed the cover from Katie, nearly knocking Amy over as she did. She let out a squeal and hugged the cover close. “Ok, ok… you win Katie.” Natalie took the cover over to the woman behind the register.

“Not so fast Natalie, they have a Sailor Moon one too… I know how much you love Sailor Moon…” Amy said as she pulled it off the rack.

Natalie bit her lip. She wanted the Sailor Moon one almost as much as she wanted the Edward one too but she had to be careful with her money. What she had with her had to last all weekend so she could only get one. Shaking her head, Natalie turned back to the woman to finish her transaction.

Amy and Katie both shrugged their shoulders as Amy put the Sailor Moon cover back on the rack. They should have known better. Snuggling with Ed WOULD be more fun than snuggling with Sailor Moon, especially to Natalie.

Each one, having picked out a pillow, walked on through the room. They were having trouble carrying the bags that the lady had put their pillows in. It didn’t take them long to get tired of trying.

“I think we need to bring these up to our room before we go wandering around anymore,” Katie said. As she did, a girl dressed as Sailor Chibi Moon came up to Natalie asking for a picture. She looked at Katie and Amy wondering what she should do. Others had started to gather too. She knew they were picture seekers too.

“Don’t worry about it Natalie,” Amy said as she took Natalie’s bag from her. “We’ll take yours up and meet you back here.”

“You sure?”

Katie smiled. “Yeah, this was the whole reason you worked so hard… go ahead… besides this little errand won’t take long so you should be just finishing up when we get back.”

“Thanks you guys,” Natalie replied with a smile and waved to her friends as they walked away.

Turning to her adoring public, Natalie held her staff and posed for pictures. One after another, people came either wanting pictures of her or with her. She didn’t turn anyone away. Finally there was only one left, a woman dressed in Luna’s human form.

She took a few pictures of Natalie with the staff up in both of her hands. When the woman paused for a moment, Natalie looked at her a bit confused. The woman looked like she wanted to ask Natalie something but seemed a bit reluctant.

“Everything ok?” she asked. “Did I do something wrong?”

The woman shook her head. “Oh no, you’ve been great. I just…”

“What is it?”

The woman fidgeted a bit before she looked up and answered. “Well I was hoping that I could get a couple with you holding the staff on the ground too…”

Natalie couldn’t help but to laugh. The woman looked at her embarrassed.

“Is that all? Sure thing!” Natalie replied as she took her pose and brought the staff end down to the ground as Katie and Amy came back from their room.

Just as the staff hit the ground a portal opened up at Natalie’s feet and in an instant she and the portal were gone.

“Natalie!!!!!” screamed Katie and Amy as they ran toward the spot where she had been just the moment before.

The woman in the Luna costume just smiled and walked away, disappearing into the crowd of people.


End file.
